I recently had a slew of 1″ buttons made for tinygrants. Would you like a few? Donate to tinygrants and a package with your name on it will be in the mail! If you have already donated to tinygrants, buttons have been mailed to the address you provided. Remember, if you donate $100 or more you will also receive a copy of the tinygrants catalogue in April 2010.

The November fundraising goal is $800, and there is only $190 more to go. Help me make it happen!

Get the application here. See the FAQ here. Donate to the project here.

You can view a working budget by clicking here. There are still quite a few costs that need to be mapped out more specifically, particularly the documentation and catalogue/printing costs. Additionally, I’ve allotted each grant as the maximum allowed ($300) but it is likely that not all projects will use that amount. tinygrants will cost a bit more than I can afford, which is why I’ve been appealing for donations to supplement my personal investment, which currently stands at about $800.

I think the response to fundraising has been positive for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the money coming in to tinygrants is distributed to a larger community. Although I obviously benefit from the success of my thesis project, which these donations and subsequent beneficiaries directly contribute to, there is more to this project than my own personal involvement. Secondly, (and without intending to speak for those who have donated), the financial support received by tinygrants may indicate a desire within the arts community (and beyond) to support new, small-scale, intervention works; this desire implicitly speaks to a current absence of funding for these types of projects.

That said, receiving donations for tinygrants has been extremely touching. I am both moved and flabbergasted that so many people have reached out — not only to generously donate their hard-earned money, but also to join the Facebook group, follow tinygrants on Twitter, subscribe to the mailing list, download the application and spread the word.

If you have a few extra bucks, consider donating to tinygrants to help me meet my November fundraising goal. There’s only $255 more to go!

A couple of things to keep in mind: funds raised in excess of my goal will not reduce my personal investment. My contribution will remain at $800. If tinygrants does raise more money than it needs according to the current budget, I will choose additional projects to fund. Depending on timelines, they may not be included in the catalogue or in my final thesis paper, but I will fund and promote them with the same attention as the projects currently included in the budget.

Thanks so much for your interest in and support for tinygrants. I’m really excited about the upcoming months!